There was one time, a while ago, when I almost took the 94. It was a Sunday, and I was at Davis, all ready to go. Then I found out that the Red Line was running shuttle buses – crap. Then I found out there was a road race going on – double crap. Then I found out that all buses were boarding on Mass Ave, five minutes away – well, there goes the 94. Now it’s time to actually ride it.

The bus in Medford Square.

Leaving Medford City Hall, where the 94 and 96 terminate, we made our way down High Street, going by the businesses of Medford Square. As the retail thinned out, we reached a rotary, where High Street curved south a bit. From there, it was mostly houses.

Eventually, we passed a school, then some more businesses near the West Medford Commuter Rail station. After crossing the tracks and going by a few more businesses, it became residential once more. We then turned onto Boston Ave, which almost went in the same direction we were coming from.

What a lovely day!

Crossing over the Mystic River, we passed a park, then went through a short industrial section. It was residential once more from there, until the intersection with Winthrop Street, where there was a business block. From there, the surroundings were mostly Tufts University buildings, which continued as we turned onto College Ave. After navigating through Powderhouse Square, College Ave eventually led to Davis Square, where the bus terminated at a street stop.

The bus at Davis.

Route: 94 (Medford Square – Davis Square Station via West Medford and Medford Hillside)

Ridership: I was surprised at how high it was! There were about 25 people on my trip from Medford to Davis. The 96 had less than 10! And it’s odd, because the 94 does get lower ridership than the 96 overall – an average of 1,596 riders on weekdays, 728 on Saturdays, and 544 on Sundays.

Pros: Okay, I didn’t realize this until now, but the 94 and 96 are actually coordinated. They have the exact same schedules (every 17 minutes rush hour, 35 minutes weekdays, 40 minutes nights, 50 minutes Saturdays, and 70 minutes Sundays), so technically all those headways are divided by two for Medford to Davis service. That means that coordinated, the routes have great schedules!

Cons: So you know how the MBTA sometimes puts two bus routes on the same schedule card? Can they please do that for the 94 and 96? I think that would make it a lot more clear that there are two options for getting from Davis to Medford Square. They do say “For additional service between Medford
Square and Davis Square Station please refer to
Route 94/96 schedule card” on their respective schedules, but that doesn’t really say much about how the schedules are coordinated.

Nearby and Noteworthy: Medford Square and Davis Square are interesting, but there isn’t much of note in between. Well, Tufts, I suppose.

Final Verdict: 8/10
Well, I done goofed. I criticized the 96 for having a pretty terrible schedule on its own. But now that I know it’s coordinated with the 94, they actually have a good schedule together! I just wish it was more obvious that they were coordinated. If the two routes had a combined schedule card, it would be much easier to plan trips out.

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I was asked by Gus Rancatore to post a map of the stations of the Green Line extension, so I figured I’d put that here. Thanks for reading, Gus!

Image source

I’ve used the 77 many times, and would consider myself quite familiar with that route. But from around Porter Square down to Harvard, there’s this other mysterious bus that shows up sometimes: the 96. It doesn’t come around too often, but it used to almost threaten me when I was younger. Whereas the 77 used those familiar New Flyers, the 96 used loud, agressive Neoplan diesels on its route. Well, it’s time to put those strange Neoplan fears to rest and finally ride…the 96.

Usually you can take any awful picture you want and pass it off as “artsy”, but I think doing that for this would be an insult to artists everywhere.

So as I mentioned, the 96 follows the 77 for a stretch north of Harvard. Thus, we headed onto Mass Ave, going by lots of familiar businesses for me. It was a bit odd – like being on the 77, but significantly quieter. The road curved towards Porter, and soon after that, we turned onto Beech Street, leaving the familiar section behind.

Right after that, we turned onto Elm Street, joining the 87. As this was an outbound trip, we bypassed downtown Davis Square, going on side streets until we reached the Davis busway. From there, we turned onto College Ave, which was residential. There were a few businesses at Powderhouse Square, otherwise known as The Rotary Of Infinite Slowness Because It Has Traffic Lights. Seriously, a rotary with traffic lights? Come on!

After that mess, we continued up College Ave, going by a big field before passing through Tufts University. Turning onto Boston Ave, we went by more university buildings, including one that was under construction. There were some restaurants marketed toward students, then we turned onto Winthrop Street, crossing over the Commuter Rail tracks.

Crossing the Mystic River.

This was the 96’s solo portion, and it was mostly residential. Soon, we turned onto George Street, going down that for a while. Then we turned onto Main Street, joining the 101 and passing through a short industrial area. We crossed the Mystic River, then turned onto Riverside Ave, now in Medford Square. I got off in the square, while the bus continued one stop further to its terminus at Medford City Hall.

The bus at City Hall.

Route: 96 (Medford Square – Harvard Station via George Street and Davis Square Station)

Ridership: On my trip, there were less than 10 people that rode. This was evidently a fluke, though, as the 96 does generally get pretty good ridership. On weekdays, it gets an average of 2,192 riders; on Saturdays, it’s 1,364; and on Sundays, it’s 696. Most people on my trip used the route for the Medford portion, either for the Square or for residential neighborhoods south of it.

Pros: It’s one of two links from Davis Square to Medford Square, and it’s the more direct one. Also, it goes all the way down to Harvard, making a link from Cambridge to Medford, as well. Its weekday schedule is pretty good, running every every 17 minutes during rush hour and every 35 minutes during the day.

Cons: Unfortunately, the rest of the schedule is much worse. The 96 runs every 40 minutes at night, every 50 minutes on Saturdays, and every 70 minutes Sundays! That’s less blasphemous than the 101’s Sunday schedule, since that route gets more ridership, but it’s still horrible.

Nearby and Noteworthy: I spent a bit of time walking around Medford Square, and it seemed pretty happening. I don’t have any specific businesses, though.

Final Verdict: 6/10 8/10 (see addendum)
Briefly, I was considering giving the 96 a 7. I figured that it gets less ridership than the 101, so the bad schedule is slightly more justified here. Honestly, this route just looks bad on the 101’s part, since that has significantly more ridership yet the exact same headways on Sundays. In regards to its routing, though, the 96 is pretty good. It’s just the schedule that drags it down. Addendum: Okay, so it turns out the 96 is coordinated with the 94. This means that together, the two routes actually run quite frequently to Medford Square, so I’m raising the 96’s score to an 8.

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